First All-Women Police Station Of North East in Shambles

August 20, 2018

* Staff shortage a perennial problem

Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Aug 19: What importance does the State police administration attach to checking crimes against women? The right response to this query is glaringly visible in the plight of the all-women police station located at Panbazar in Guwahati. It is the first all-women police station in the Northeast.

The State police administration continues to fall short of doing enough when it comes to putting in place infrastructure at the all-eve police station in the city. And it has been happening since the inception of the women police station in 1993. Shortage of staff has been perennial in the police station. This is despite the fact that an assistant commissioner of police (ACP) has been attached to the police station since January 1, 2015 when the Guwahati Police Commissionerate came into existence. There are only two sub-inspectors (SIs) working in the police station against three sanctioned posts. It has none of the three sanctioned assistant sub-inspector (ASI) posts. Likewise, there is not a single head constable (HC) in the police station even as two posts have been sanctioned since its inception. There are only 12 constables against 30 sanctioned posts in the police station.

Barring the ACP, the police station has an inspector as the officer-in-charge (OC). There is no second officer. Strangely enough, the police station does not have any vehicle for carrying accused to courts and hospitals. The OC’s vehicle is used for carrying accused to courts and other places, when needed. All the posts were sanctioned when the police station was established in 1993, and not after the emergence of Guwahati Police Commissionerate.

At least three cases are reported to the police station daily. Even as its jurisdiction was mentioned as Kamrup at the time of its inception, if/when cases are registered the personnel of the police station have to go much beyond their official jurisdiction. In 2018 as many as 98 cases have been registered in the police station so far.